Hyogo with a baby (0–1) 4 spots
Hyogo has Himeji Castle, which in 1993 became one of Japan's first World Heritage sites. On Kobe's shore there is also the only aquarium in western Japan with an orca show (opened 2024). It suits families who want to show their kids a real castle, and kids who love sea animals.
An aquarium in three buildings, with a stadium each for orcas and dolphins.
Stroller OK · Nursing room · Changing table · checked Aug ’26
A drive-through safari, a walking safari and an amusement park in one place.
Stroller OK · Nursing room · Changing table · checked Aug ’26
The zoo covers eight hectares and holds an animal science museum and an amusement park.
Stroller OK · Nursing room · Changing table · checked Aug ’26
Rokkosan Athletic Park GREENIA
An adventure park spread over 20 hectares of hillside, with 174 obstacle points.
Stroller OK · checked Aug ’26
No ticket is needed for children of three and under, so this age gets in free. The orcas and the dolphins each have their own building — Orca Stadium and Dolphin Stadium — and a baby in your arms can watch something that large move through water from a seat in the stands.There are three nursing rooms, one on the ground floor of each of the three buildings. Diaper changing tables are in the nursing rooms and in some toilets. Strollers are lent for 300 yen a day from two information desks, on the ground floors of Orca Stadium and Aqua Live; numbers are limited and there are no reservations. Each building has a stroller parking area, and strollers are to be folded when left. There are ramps and elevators provided for wheelchair users. At the restaurant Blue Ocean the rule is to leave the stroller by the register, though if your child is asleep you may take it to the table — the gaps between tables are narrow. Bringing food and drink into the buildings is discouraged; eating is done at Sea World Plaza and the third-floor stands of Orca and Dolphin Stadiums, all outdoors, with partial roofing on the stands. Each building has a first-aid room. Same-day re-entry is possible: tell a cast member near the exit and they stamp the back of your hand.
The safari has two courses, one you drive through and one you walk. The drive-through is done in your own car or on a safari ride, so a baby can stay in their seat and watch the animals through the window.There are two nursing rooms, one near Child's Farm and one beside the information center on the amusement park side, each with a baby bed, a chair, running water and air conditioning. Diaper changing beds are in every restroom in the amusement park and in the restroom in front of the safari gate, and a vending machine sells diapers two for 250 yen. Strollers rent at the amusement park information center: 6 reclining type A and 15 non-reclining type B, 500 yen plus a 3,000 yen deposit that comes back if nothing is damaged. You cannot walk between the amusement park and the safari, so plan on the free shuttle bus or your own car.
The grounds are largely barrier-free, so you can push a stroller through all 80,618 square meters. There are about 150 rental strollers, 300 yen for the ones rated up to age 2, and you can wheel the baby right up to Fureai Hiroba, the children's animal corner with sheep and goats.There are three nursing rooms, all with hot water for formula. Stroller tickets come from the machine inside the shop, and carrier-type strollers may not be brought in. The zoo warns that there are many slopes, some of them steep. One family with a three-year-old and a baby arrived at 9:30 and was done in about three hours, early lunch in the animal science museum and the rides included.
Admission is free for children 0 to 3. You can move a stroller through the park, which spreads 174 obstacle points across a hillside, so the baby takes it in from the stroller or from your arms while the rest of the family climbs and crosses. You may bring your own food and drink and a tent, and pitch the tent on the lawn or anywhere it does not block a path, which gives you a resting spot of your own. Rokkosan runs about 5°C cooler than the city below, so even in summer you are in cool air.A stroller can generally get around the grounds, but the athletic areas are left as natural terrain and some places climb and drop steeply. Strollers and luggage carts are allowed in. Since Rokkosan is about 5°C cooler than the city, bring a windproof jacket that layers on and off. Children 0 to 3 are free, but anyone accompanying without doing the athletics still pays admission, so a parent who only watches needs a ticket too, at 3,000 yen for an adult. With your ticket you may re-enter the same day, so you can go back to the car to drop off luggage. Parking (1,000 yen for a regular car, 2,000 yen in peak season) and the coin lockers (200 yen small, 400 yen large) take cash only.